Well folks, the COVID-19 virus has shut down sports.  College sports seasons have been cancelled, and professional sports have been postponed for the foreseeable future.

Yeah.  It really sucks.

Lots of us are stuck at home with nothing to watch.  

What are you gonna do?  Talk to your wife? Play with your kids?  Hell no! The As For Football crew has put together a list of much-watch football favorites and forgotten classics, both from recent years and from the bygone years of football’s past.  Check these out, and hopefully by the time you finish watching all of them, pitchers and catchers will be back at work preparing for Major League Baseball to start up again.  

Also, please add your own personal faves in the comments below.

Kelvin Hopkins Jr. showcasing some social distancing ?

77-yard TD from the 2018 @ArmedForcesBowl was the longest run in bowl history for the Black Knights!#GoArmy pic.twitter.com/evqz4ZCwkl

— Army Football (@ArmyWP_Football) March 18, 2020

 

The Manning Family

Friends, you only think you hate the Mannings.  But imagine a world where Archie and Olivia Manning raised three girls instead of three football-playing boys. Former New England Patriots QB Tom Brady would have nine Super Bowl rings!  NINE!!!  You think Boston fans are smug now, imagine what they’d be like without the Mannings knocking old Tom Terrific off every couple of years.  

Intolerable.

Anyway, this first game comes courtesy of the Way Back Machine.  It occurred to me recently that some of you either weren’t around back in 1995, or else you maybe weren’t watching a ton of sports back in the day.  So maybe you don’t appreciate Peyton Manning. Hell, maybe you never saw him play his college ball back at Tennessee. We therefore start with the 1995 Citrus Bowl, featuring Peyton Manning and the Tennessee Volunteers (10-1) against Eddie George and the Ohio State Buckeyes (11-1).

But you knew about Peyton, am I right?  What about Eli?

We’ll stay on-theme with the 2007 Super Bowl, featuring Eli and the Giants against Brady and the then-undefeated Patriots.

Honestly, I get so tired of people ragging on Eli Manning.  He probably wasn’t as good as his brother during the regular season, but my God, he was money when it counted.  Giants fans today are dependent on Daniel Jones, and well…

It’s been a tough come-down.

 

Catching Up with Daniel Jones

Speaking of Jones, you might remember the furor in New York after the Giants drafted Jones sixth overall in last year’s draft.  Giants fans were not happy, but all we heard in the aftermath was, “Well, you never saw him play.”

Let’s rectify that.

My favorite Daniel Jones game by far is a recent Army classic, Jones and the Blue Devils at Michie Stadium in November 2017 against Ahmad Bradshaw and the Army Black Knights.  

Play Along at Home: Can you spot the glaring flaw in Jones’ game that would come back to haunt his first year as a pro?

Eh, okay.  That was a cheap shot.  Those big Army boys beat-up on Jones and his little Blue Devils, and maybe it wasn’t fair.  

How about a game where Jones played well?

I’ll give you three:

 — UNC at Duke (2018)
— Duke vs. Miami (2018)
— The 2018 Independence Bowl: Duke vs. Temple

Finally, it’s just highlights, but here’s Jones’ best start as a Giant, on the road against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers early in the season.

 

Intro to Vince Young & Steve McNair

This next game features arguably the best college football player in history in his pinnacle performance.  If you’ve never seen it, the 2005 National Championship is an absolute must-watch. It’s the Rose Bowl, featuring Vince Young and the Texas Longhorns against Reggie Bush and the USC Trojans.  

What a game!

Young went on to quarterback the Tennessee Titans.  But if you’re gonna watch the Titans, Young isn’t the quarterback you want to watch.  No, you want to watch Young’s mentor, the legendary Steve “Air” McNair. This next game features McNair and Eddie George (again!) against Kurt Warner, the Rams, and the Greatest Show on Turf.

Odds are, you’ve seen the highlights.  Really, though, the whole game is worth watching.

 

Joe Burrow & LSU

LSU QB Joe Burrow is the next big thing, right?  Here he is with #2 LSU at #3 Alabama just this past year.

You saw that one, right?  You also saw Burrow beat up on UCF in 2018?

Well, try the 2005 Peach Bowl, featuring #9 Miami against #10 LSU.  

Bonus points: I’ve never seen this game and have no idea who won!

From the Army Football family, we want to make sure everyone is staying healthy!

************TIP OF THE DAY***********

Make sure to wash your hands the amount of time it takes to end a streak!#GoArmy#BEATnavy pic.twitter.com/WQLyx3luRM

— Army Football (@ArmyWP_Football) March 17, 2020

 

Recommendations from the Crew

I put the question out to the AFF Crew, saying, “Let’s include a mix of instant-classics and games that nobody remembers.”  

Rob came through big-time.  He recommended the 2014 Bahamas Bowl.  Bet you don’t know who won that one!

What about the same bowl but from 2019?

Finally Jordan Horvath recommends the 2017 War on I-4.  I remember that one, but yeah, it’s definitely worth a watch.

 

That’s all I’ve got time for this week.  Help us out, friends, and drop some of your recommended links in the comments below.

Thanks!

Go Army!  Beat Coronavirus!!!